2/29/2004
George and Angelina Weasley stood in front of their new house. It had a been a year in the making, but it was worth it. The simple two-story house, painted a fog gray and the shutters were a contrasting ivory white. Very modern, and a perfect starter home for the two of them with its four bedrooms and two bathrooms. Not only that, but it was much larger than the flat they had been living in above Weasley Wizard Wheezes. Their new house was also much closer to the rest of the Weasleys; only a fifteen minute walk at most. The flat that they had used to live in was now being occupied by Verity, George's assistant at the store. She had graduated from Hogwarts the same year as the twins, only she was in Hufflepuff, a and was eager to finally move into her own place after recently leaving her ex-boyfriend. It also was reassuring that someone would continue to be at the location constantly.
'I can't wait for us to raise our child here," Angelina murmured happily as she caressed her growing, almost nine-month, pregnant stomach. Surprisingly, it was still very small. She had fully expected that she would be looking like she had swallowed the Quaffle. "And he or she will be close enough to visit Grandma and Grandpa Weasley every day."
George smiled, "Hopefully that will make up for us eloping, eh Angie."
Angelina gave her husband a look of pure exasperation. His nickname for her, which normally made her melt, did nothing at that moment, "Nothing will ever make up for that."
"But honestly, would you have wanted anything different," George asked her, almost challengingly.
"No," she sighed, "From what you told me, I would have hated all of that excessive nonsense." She smiled up at her husband's smirking face, as she remembered the day that George had proposed to her; September 16, 2001. He immediately requested that they elope that very day in order to spare them both from Molly Weasley's endless onslaught of wedding preparations. She agreed to the eloping but she persuaded him to wait until a few months. She didn't want to completely rob both of their families of their happiness.
George chuckled softly, "Fred and I always agreed that we would put the Body-Bind Jinx on her, but I just figured not telling her would work just as well. We're lucky you had that Muggle cousin who was a Minister."
Angelina nodded, remembering her cousin, Eric's, stunned face when they showed up at his flat in London in the middle of a cold March day the following year, asking to be married immediately. She had worn a white cocktail dress that she had purchased at Muggle retail store with money that her father had given her. She had adorned her hair with a single white rose and a small piece of lace that was secured by bobby pins which acted as her veil. He had simply worn black dress robes. Only a select few had been in on the secret: they had asked a few mutual acquittances from Hogwarts to be present at the ceremony; their old Gryffindor Quidditch Teammates who had been their closest friends: Lee Jordan, who agreed to be George's best man, Oliver Wood as a Groomsman, Alicia Spinnet had agreed to be her Maid of Honor, and Katie Bell as a Bridesmaid. Charlie had been given the very important job of being a Secret Keeper, a job which he flawlessly did as he was stationed in Romania at the time, thus making it almost impossible for him to leak the information. Harry agreed to help take the pictures of the blessed day. Needless to say, those who were not in the know were less than thrilled that they had not been invited, but understood their request for privacy. However, Molly took the slight the hardest and refused to speak to the two of them for almost a month. Ironically, it had been Percy who was able to talk some sense into her and have her realize it wasn't against her, rather they didn't want the same experience that Fleur and Bill wanted. That had been almost two years ago.
"Well, Molly got over it," Angelina replied, "And she's excited to have a new grandchild."
"About that," George responded, "I was at the shop the other day and I heard some kids talking about Norse prankster god. Maybe…"
"No." Angelina stated firmly.
It had been two weeks since Angelina and George moved into their new house. George was at work at Weasleys' Wizard Wheezes while Angelina began her first day of maternity leave. She would be working from home for the next few weeks reporting to the Department of Magical Games and Sports every other day regarding the upcoming Quidditch season both for the Hogwarts season and the International Games. In front of her at the table she had the Hogwarts schedule tentatively prepared. The first game of the next year would fall on October 18th and would be between Slytherin and Ravenclaw. She expected it would be a good game and planned to be there herself as she had never missed a Hogwarts game since the Battle of Hogwarts. She whistled to her owl, Ibid. A tawny brown owl with piercing amber eyes flew over to her and stuck out its leg. She quickly wrapped the parchment around it, "Professor McGonagall," she told him. "Make sure she signs off on it and bring it back at once, all right, Ibid?"
Ibid blinked his eyes slowly, as if to signal that he understood, clicked his beak and flew out the window to deliver the message. Once McGonagall had approved the dates and matches between houses, she would send word to her boss, Murphey, to have him confirm. She turned to the much larger task of setting up the matches in England between the thirteen different Quidditch teams and reached over to take a sip of her cup of tea and brought it up and took a sip. Hot and strong; just how she liked it. She sighed contently.
"Good morning, Angelina," came a voice that startled her out of concentration. She turned around quickly, accidently spilling her cup of tea on the floor
"Bloody hell," she muttered and went to fetch a towel. Molly Weasley beat her to it and swooped down to clean the spill.
"Sorry dear, I didn't mean to startle you. I just came to see how you were doing. I haven't seen you in a while now," she warbled as she cleaned up the mess.
"I saw you only three days ago," Angelina protested, laughing. She turned and flicked her wand. The tea kettle began to shriek as she fetched two new teacups. After adding the milk and sugar, she brought them both for her mother-in-law and for herself. Molly smiled ruefully and took her cup from Angelina and sat down at the empty seat beside her.
"You never were one to keep still," Molly mused as she glanced the skew of papers at the table.
"The baby should be here any day," she confided as she rubbed her stomach, "My due date is in two days, but I wanted to work for as long as I could. George has been driving me nuts actually. He had the nerve to ask me to sleep all day. As soon as he left, I started working on this," she gestured to the paperwork.
Molly smiled at her daughter-in-law, "He only has your best interests at heart, dear. And honestly Angelina, maybe you could use a break."
"My best interests would be for me to go throw a Quaffle or two," she admitted, "You know how much I love flying. And I'll take a break, AFTER the baby arrives."
"Well, if you're due any day, maybe I should stay here," Molly suggested, "I actually came to drop this off," she gestured to a large bag that lay forgotten at her feet where she had dropped it upon arrival, "I hope you like it."
"Molly, you didn't need to do that," Angelina assured her, but picked up the bag anyway. She expected that Molly had whipped up a baby blanket using the Knitting Charm or some other treasured article of clothing for the baby. What she withdrew was unexpected.
"A toy broomstick," she asked, confused. Sure, she and George had highly anticipated the day that they would have their son or daughter on their very own broom, flying around and preparing to play for Gryffindor Quidditch Team, but that was years down the road.
"It belonged to Fred," Molly replied, her voice careful as not to crack with emotion, "Ron broke it many years ago, by accident of course, but Arthur was able to fix it. No one has used it for years, but I was going through the attic the other day and I thought that George might appreciate having it here." She dropped off and looked down suddenly. Angelina bit her lip, a wave of deep sadness washed over her. She, like all of the other members of the Weasley family, mourned Fred's early demise. She knew her husband would treasure this item and she knew that both George and Molly took it the worse. He was George's twin and Molly's her son, whom she bore. To have him ripped from her arms, was too much for her to bear some days. She never said anything, but Angelina knew from Ginny that Molly often had difficult days in which she was caught in their bedroom grieving for her lost son.
"I love it," she assured Molly and saw her wipe a tear away from her eye, "And I know George will appreciate having a piece of his brother here too."
"Yes, well," Molly said, straightening up quickly and getting to her feet immediately, "If you don't need me, then I really must get going. Fleur needs to run to Diagon Alley and I promised to watch the girls for her," she quickly grabbed her handpurse. "I'll see if someone can pop in to check in on you in a couple of hours to make sure you're all right."
"Could you ask Fleur to pick up some Floo Powder for us? We ran out this morning," Angelina asked, following her mother-in-law as Molly made a speedy exit for the door. Molly nodded without looking backwards and disapparated as soon as she crossed the threshold to the house.
Angelina blinked at the spot where Molly had left and sighed. Molly always tried to put on a tough exterior and rarely showed her emotions. The fact that she fled so quickly proved to Angelina that her mother-in-law was struggling with the fact that Fred wasn't here to see his twin become a father. She looked down at her still slight stomach and placed her hand on it, "I wish you could have seen how your Uncle and Father were together," she thought, "You would have loved Fred." The baby kicked her hard in agreement. She went back to the table and picked up the toy broomstick. She walked to the Nursery that their former Dumbledore's Army member, Luna, had created. Luna truly did have a knack for art and had created a Quidditch pitch arena mural on all the walls. Her father, Elias, was a Muggle carpenter and had made a very beautiful crib and changing table that was painted in Gryffindor red and gold. She looked around the room and found the perfect place to place the broomstick. She walked over to the dresser and placed it on the top. She smiled as she stepped back to admire it. Next to the broom was a photo of the Weasley twins, laughing and smiling during their sixth year. Fred nodded as if giving his approval.
She sighed and gazed around the room. It wouldn't be long now and she was both excited and petrified to become a mother. Her own mother had ran off with a classmate of hers who was a Hit Wizard from the Ministry shortly after she was born during the height of He-Who Must-Not-Be-Named first rise to power. Her father claimed that she did it to protect them both, but Angelina was sure it was because she was afraid of what would happen to her when they found she had married a Muggle. Two years ago, she had received word that her mother had passed away in a tragic accident involving a Muggle house exploding from a gas leak. Wrong place at the wrong time. Her father had heard about it on the Muggle news. Still as her legal husband, he claimed her body and buried her at the local cemetery, being the only one who mourned her loss. Angelina refused to attend.
Angelina quickly turned and went back into the kitchen to complete her work. She determined that a Hufflepuff and Gryffindor match would be a promising event. She would also have to try to get a match between Slytherin and Gryffindor and one between Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff before the Christmas holidays. The last round, Gryffindor vs. Ravenclaw and Slytherin vs. Hufflepuff would have to happen sometime in the early winter months of the following year. Then, pending the results, the Quidditch cup would be scheduled. Having a knack for Muggle logic puzzles made her job rewarding but trying to make a schedule for all thirteen British and Irish teams was a much more difficult task. She knew that would take up much more time.
As she worked, the names of the teams swam through her mind. It got to the point that she had to put down her quill and lay down on the couch with a warm pad over her eyes, to quell the oncoming migraine. What she wanted, more than anything in the whole world was to get some rest.
FLASHBACK
Angelina was once again wearing her Gryffindor robes, surrounded by her fellow Quidditch players. Oliver Wood was busy talking with their new Seeker, Harry Potter. George had excused himself to use the restroom and Katie Bell and Alicia Spinnett were busy adjusting their robes. It was their first match between Gryffindor and Slytherin of the season and Potter's first game ever. Needless to say, they were all a bit nervous.
"Oi, Johnson," Fred called, "You forgot something." She looked down. She was wearing all of her protective padding, covering her knees and shins, hands, elbows, and shoulders, and obviously, helmet. She was holding her broom, a Cleansweep Nine.
"What," she asked, truly perplexed.
Fred walked up to her and took her hand and gently placed something inside. He folded her fingers around it and winked as he walked away. She looked at him, a bit perplexed and opened her fingers. Inside was a small box. She looked at it; it was wooden. She turned and walked out of sight from everyone examined it. On the top, it read in a simple script, "Roses are Red, Violets are Blue, all of my Riches, I Give to You." She lifted the lid and burst out laughing. Inside was a single Bronze Knut. She flipped it over and on the back, carved into the wood, it read 'Happy Birthday AEJ'. Her initials, for 'Angelina Elizabeth Johnson'. She slipped it into her pocket and smiled. Fred always made her laugh.
With a start, Angelina woke up. It was a cruel dream, making her relive that memory with a dear friend when she was alive and married to his brother, while he was dead. It was times like this that she was the most sad. Fred would have been over the moon to become an Uncle and would have teased her so persistently about hiding a Bludger under her shirt. But it wasn't the dream that woke her up. It was the sudden pain that wracked her body. She lifted the blanket carefully and gave a small shriek at what she saw. Her water had broken.
"Oh no," Angelina gasped, "No, no, no, no. Not yet!" But despite her denial, she also knew her body. She had been having the fake contractions for close to a week, even at work and she had brushed them off. But this…this was something else. They were harder, stronger, and quicker. "Bloody hell, George is at work. My water broke, and I've never done this before." She recited to herself mentally, "Mom's dead and Dad is at work. We don't have a phone, so I can't call him. Molly is with Vic and Domi. Arthur and all of my brothers and sisters-in-law are at work at the Ministry, except for Fleur who is at Diagon Alley. What do I do, what do I do," she mused. The contraction wracked her body again. She had no idea how to conjure a patronus. Harry had taught Dumbledore's army; she knew the incantation and how to summon one, but she was never able to conjure one successfully. Ibid was at Hogwarts, so she couldn't send word by owl post. She could try to travel to St. Mungos through the Floo Network, but of course, they were out of Floo Powder. She stumbled to their bedroom and picked up her wand; Redwood with Dragon Heartstring as a core and walked out to the kitchen. She grabbed a piece of paper and quickly wrote a message. She folded it into an origami bird transfigured it into an actual hummingbird. Hopefully it would find someone who knew that it was an actual message. "Go to George's work. Find a Weasley or Verity," she commanded, "Pester them until they understand. Go, now!" The bird zipped out the door she opened and closed immediately. It was cold, even for February.
"Well, your timing is just perfect," she muttered to her baby and began to pace as she waited for the upcoming contractions.
"Verity, you're in charge," George declared. The slight blond witch beamed and nodded as George walked out of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes and began walking down Diagon Alley. He was on a mission to get supplies for his newest invention; he was hoping to create a new candy; a gum that would seal a person's mouth shut permanently, until the person inhaled hot water vapor. He had a new spring in his step as he thought of his brilliant prank. Now all he needed was a name. That was the hard part. Fred always had a knack for creating product names. As he passed stores left and right, he began to reminisce about his Hogwarts days as he passed certain stores; 2nd Hand Brooms, where he had got his first broom and Olivanders: Dogwood with Phoenix Tail Feather. It was times like this that the loss of Fred hit him hardest; the days when joy was about to occur. He was always happy for the birth of a new member of the family, or addition of an in-law, but then he would become devastated as Fred wasn't there to see it. He tried to remain optimistic, remembering on what Fleur had once told him about loss and Angelina was his rock.
"Hello George," a voice brought him back to reality. He looked around and noticed an old friend staring at him; Katie Bell, the former Gryffindor Chaser. Beside her was a young boy, his brown eyes were huge in wonder and excitement. He wondered who he was. He knew Katie had no siblings and there was no way she could be a mother of a kid around Hogwarts age without him knowing about it.
"Hey Katie," he smiled and went to greet her, "What are you doing around here?"
She beamed and looked down at the boy, "Bringing Ethan to Diagon Alley. Turns out my fiancés' nephew received an owl yesterday with an acceptance letter to Hogwarts. Ethan," she turned to the boy, "This is one of my best friends from Hogwarts. His name is George and he and I played Quidditch together."
The boy's eyes widened in amazement. Clearly, he had already been told about the famous Wizarding sport.
"Really," George asked, eagerly, "Well, congratulations on your engagement. Do I know the guy?"
She shook her head, "He's a Muggle. It was a bit a surprise when Professor Sinistra showed up at their house during the birthday party to explain that he was a wizard."
George nodded and looked down at the young boy, Ethan. He had fawn colored hair and light brown eyes. He had a mischievous look in his eyes. A look that he knew all too well from Fred and his time at Hogwarts. "Well, Ethan, what House sounds the best to you? Remember, there is only one right answer."
The boy smiled and grinned, "Ravenclaw." George shook his head in mock disappointment and groaned theatrically, "A bookworm. Why did he have to be a bookworm?" Katie giggled and hugged the little boy. "Us Gryffindors are bit proud of our house," she confided, "but Ravenclaws have never been a true enemy, except in Quidditch."
"So where are you off to," George asked as he turned to Katie, "Olivanders?"
Ethan beamed and looked at Katie with a hopeful expression. Her glare at him, quickly shot down his wish.
"Not today," she declared and she stood up, "Books, naturally. A Cauldron, a telescope and star map, phials, scales, and maybe a pet." She looked at him, "MAYBE." Ethan looked a bit more hopeful.
"What about a broom," he asked. Apparently, he must have already asked this question because she muttered something about never should have mentioning Quidditch. George grinned, "Well, stop by my store when you can closer to September. Wizard pranks are the best ones."
Ethan bounced up and down in excitement. George waved to Katie and Ethan and continued walking and entered the Apothecary. Once he had purchased some supplies that he thought may be beneficial to his newest creation, he began to head back to the shop. As he entered, he noticed Verity shouting something.
"Shoo, scat, go away," she waved her arms as if to banish something, the muggle way. He noticed a small bird flitting around her head. It was dive-bombing her, like an annoying Snitch to a Seeker. At first, he thought it might actually be the Golden Snidget, the legendary bird that inspired the Snitch, but he noticed that it was hummingbird. Odd, as they weren't native to these parts.
"How did that get in here," he asked incredulously as he pulled his wand out of his coat. He tried to get a lock on the bird, but it was so small and so fast. Too bad Harry wasn't around. He knew he could hit it, but didn't want to damage the store with the stunning spell. It looked as if Verity had already unsuccessfully attempted this before as merchandise lay askew all around the store.
He decided this was a risk worth taking. He aimed his wand as the bird flew up to the rafters, he pointed and cried, "Stupefy," and the bird immediately dropped out of the air and into his waiting hand.
"Thank goodness," Verity panted.
"How the bloody hell did it get in here," he asked again, as he examined the small bird. It seemed to be uninjured.
"A customer was leaving and it flew in the door," she explained and shrugged her shoulders, "Freak accident."
"It's as light as paper," he marveled. He walked outside and just as he was about to whisper the counter-curse, Rennervate, Verity blocked him.
"Don't," she commanded in exhaustion, "I stunned it twice already, and as soon as I revived it, that's what it continued its bloody assault."
"Bloody hell," he muttered again as he examined the bird. Clearly, this bird was no ordinary one.
"Let me try something," Verity mused and withdrew her wand and said very clearly, "—". The bird spun around and landed in George's hand again, no longer a small bird, but an origami paper.
"You're brilliant, Verity," George marveled and opened the paper up. He scanned the contents and dropped it as he raced out the door.
"George," she called out, a bit shocked. He did not look back and instead, Disapparated before her very eyes. She gave the spot a curious stare and then returned to the shop and picked up the parchment, smoothed it out and read it to herself. Her eyes widened as she read it and realized in horror what the bird was wanting. It wanted help.
Angelina let out a low moan as another contraction wracked her body. Where the bloody hell was George? She decided she couldn't wait any longer. She walked over to the door. She would have to fly with a broom to Mum and Dad Weasley's, break in, and take their Floo Network. She had hoped she wouldn't have to do this but she couldn't think of any alternate. She hoped they wouldn't have an Intruder Jinx. That was all she needed! But, it was now or never. As soon as she touched the doorknob, the worst pain broke out. She crumpled over and shrieked. She lay on the floor, broken and in pain.
"George," she screamed, her eyes fiercely closed to everything while she focused on the pain.
"Angelina," she heard a voice rasp in shock. Then she felt being lifted up and walked to the couch. She opened her eyes and had to blink a few times. FRED was staring at her. No, no it wasn't Fred. It was George. George was there.
"Hey beautiful," he said, looking at her with loving eyes, "I got your message," he said as gave her a fierce, but loving and passionate kiss on her forehead, "I came as quickly as I could. Are you hurt?"
"No, I'm fine," she gasped, "Is the baby all right?"
"Well, you're still pregnant, so I would say yes."
"George!"
"Let's get you to St. Mungos," he decided and walked over to fireplace.
"We're out of Floo Powder," she panted.
George looked at her, surprised and looked in the small urn they usually kept it, frowned, and replaced it. "Did you check the reserve?"
"Reserve," she asked stupidly, "what reserve?"
George smirked and walked over to their fireplace. On it was a variety of different knick-knacks that had been given to them over the years. One of which was a pewter, Goblin-made donkey figurine that had been given to them by his Great-Aunt Muriel in her will. He picked it up and screwed off the head. Inside was about a goblet full amount of Floo Powder.
"When did that become a reserve," she hissed through the pain.
"I didn't know what else to do with the bloody thing," he admitted, "and she used it mainly for a –"
"I don't give a damn," Angelina roared as a contraction raced thru her body.
"Right," George agreed and grabbed a handful and thru it into the open fire. The emerald green flames burst forth and he took his wife in his arms and led her into the warm flames. "St. Mungos" them both proclaimed and allowed themselves to be pulled away.
As he watched his wife panting, screaming, and laboring in the bed, he offered her his hand. She grabbed it and the strength of which she gripped could have easily been matched by someone who had consumed a strengthening potion of Snapes. He bit the inside of his lip to keep from yelling about his own pain.
"One more push Angelina," the Healer encouraged, standing at the end of the bed. Another Healer, one who barely looked like she had graduated from Hogwarts stood beside her, her eyes wide with amazement and perhaps fear. Angelina screamed and pushed. Despite having lost the ear, George could still hear the scream and was sure that he would go deaf in it before long.
"A boy," the Healer cried in joy and scooped up the squalling newborn. George gasped as he saw the woman turn and placed the baby in the young training Healer's open arms which held a blanket. The young witch took the baby and wrapped it up quickly.
"Want to cut the cord Dad," the older Healer asked, offering him a pair of medical scissors. He nodded mutely and walked over and cut where instructed. He turned away from his disheveled wife and stared at his son. Those black hypnotic eyes…
"Please follow me," the young witch said and he did. She brought him into a cozy room where she washed, weighed, and measured the baby. Another Healer, a male this time, stopped by and asked George if he could accompany him into another room. He agreed and followed him into a clerical office. There he typed the necessary information up on a Muggle computer to send off to the Muggle Liason office. The official one was also to be typed and sent to the Ministry.
"And his name," he asked when he got to the 'Name of Child' section
"We haven't picked one yet," George admitted, "We couldn't decide."
"You had nine months to prepare," the man replied in disbelief. He shook his head, "I need a name by the end of the day."
That was less than six hours from then. He nodded and stood up, "Is that all?"
"Yes Mr. Weasley."
George nodded in thanks and walked back to the room. There he saw Angelina laying on the bed. Tears, he wasn't sure if they were from pain or joy, glistened in her eyes. The head Healer still was there adjusting the bedspread but sitting in a chair and talking with her.
"Where is he," Angelina asked.
"I thought they brought him back by now," George replied, shocked.
"Your son is fine," the Healer replied, standing up, "He should be back in ten minutes or so. He needs to be vaccinated so he doesn't get any Muggle disease as well as Magical ones. I was just advising your wife on how she can begin exercising in a few hours. I'll stop by to see how you're feeling first. You've just had a child and need to rest. If you need to use the restroom, ring me. NO HEROICS," she stated firmly.
Angelina sighed, a bit defeated and laid back, "When can I ride a broom?"
"Not for a few months," she said firmly and huffed as she left the room "Quidditch players…". A moment later, the young witch returned with the baby. "Ten pounds, three inches, twenty-one inches long. He's a stocky one, your young bairn," she complimented, her Scottish lilt echoed in the quiet room. She walked over and placed the squalling infant into his arms, "There you go Dad. She turned to Angelina and asked, "Do you need anything else Ma'am? Perhaps some warm ale or something to eat?
"I am a bit hungry," Angelina admitted, "Thank you…" her voice trailed off.
"I'm Ainsley Donnerall," she introduced, "let me know if there is anything else I can get for you."
Angelina lay in her bed, her eyes closed, resting from the long day. George was cradling the baby gingerly in his arms.
"He's so tiny," he whispered, marveling over the captivating baby.
"10 pounds is not tiny," Angelina scoffed, her eyes still closed, "You try being in labor for seven hours. I promise you, it is not fun."
"I wonder what position he'll play on the Quidditch team," he pondered, "with a stocky build like him, I think he'd make a good Keeper."
"Probably," she agreed, opening her eyes, finally, and she took her husband's hand and squeezed it gently, "We still need to name him."
George nodded, "I've been thinking about it for a while too."
Angelina nodded, "I know what name you're thinking of George. It's okay."
"Really," George asked, his voice turning hopeful. She nodded, her smile radiant as they stared into their son's cherubic face.
"Fred," he whispered and look down at the boy. Unlike all of the other Weasleys thus far born in the family, his skin was dark, almost the color of a light tan. His hair was black like Angelina's but wavy like his Uncle Charlie's. And his eyes were black as coal. "Fred Elias," he repeated and Angelina sighed happily.
"It's perfect," she murmured, "Daddy will so thrilled."
"I'm surprised you could keep the secret," he joked, "His name as the middle name and considering you two are so close!"
"I am a Daddy's girl," she admitted, "but I didn't want to get his hope up if it was a girl. And this way, we can honor both of our families together." She squeezed his arm gently in a reassuring way.
George agreed; on one hand, this was an amazing way to honor his brother. Fred would have taken his nephew aside and christened him Fred 2 and himself as Fred 1. He absolutely would have milked it for all it was worth. But alas, his son would not have that honor or privilege to meet the more outspoken of the two. In addition, Angelina was best friends with the both of them since they met and she knew how much his twin's death had taken a toll on him and how she had supported him every step of the way. To have their own Fred would help with the final task of healing. On the other hand, he felt that there could only be one Fred. To name someone else that would be like trying to fill that void that could never be filled. But Angie knew that. And she wasn't trying to do that.
"Do you remember the first time we met on the train," he whispered. He knew she did. In their first year, Bill, Charlie, and Percy had escorted them onto the train. Bill as Head Boy made sure they had a compartment that was comfortable and then made his way to the front of the train to begin his duties. Charlie, a Prefect also went with him. Percy stayed in their compartment long enough until the station was out of sight and then went to find a few friends from Ravenclaw, leaving the duo alone…in a compartment…with multiple Zonkos products they had purchased in their sleeves.
FLASHBACK
George peeked his head out the door and saw the Trolley Witch coming with her cart filled with all sorts of delicious goodies. He sighed and closed the door behind him and sat down, staring at the cold roast beef sandwich his mother had made for him. His stomach growled angrily at the food.
"I have eight sickles left," Fred declared, "How much do you have? I want to buy something from the Trolley Witch. Bill told us she bakes the best treats."
"Six," George glared at him, "We spent all of our galleons on the pranks. We'll just have to have Mum's sandwiches and make the best of it or wait and have the tasty food when we arrive." He made a point and taking a large bite out of the roast beef sandwich. He swallowed quickly, hating how dry it was.
"I know," Fred whined a bit, "but I really want a Chocolate Frog. Maybe I'll even get a Djedi card!"
"I'll get you one," a voice interrupted. They looked up a saw a girl with single black braid that fell over her left shoulder. She was wearing similar first year robes. Her black eyes were wide and earnest. George also noticed that they were…hopeful?
"No that's okay," he said, and held up his bitten sandwich, "we're good." He glared at Fred.
"No, it's my treat," the girl said and she pulled out a small-string bag. She opened it up, "I still have six galleons left over from my trip to Diagon Alley."
George and Fred stared at her in amazement at the generous offer. She placed two Galleons in each of their hands.
"May I sit," she asked politely. They both nodded, lost for words. She came in, carrying a cat carrier. Inside was a black cat with white paws and yellow eyes whose expression simply was 'I could kill you with a stare'.
"I'm Angelina Johnson. Who are you?"
"I'm Fred Weasley," Fred said.
"And I'm George."
"Or am I George?"
"Honestly I can't remember."
Angelina began to giggle, "Okay Not Fred and Not George. What House do you think you'll be in?"
"Gryffindor," they both said in unison. "All our family is there," Fred explained. "Except our for Gran Cedrella. But she died last year. Dragon Pox, but she was in Slytherin."
"She could make a great Beef Pie," George remembered. He turned to the girl and asked, "What about you,"
The girl shrugged, "Gryffindor sounds the best, but I also wouldn't say no to Hufflepuff. My mum," he saw her disdain as she said the word, "was in Slytherin."
"And you're father?"
"Muggle-born. And I haven't seen my mum since I was a baby so don't ask." She crossed her arms as if to shut down the conversation. "I live with my dad and his girlfriend, Danielle."
At that moment, the trolley witch came into their corridor and announced "Anything from the trolley?" They each waited their turn. Fred bought his Chocolate Frog, an Acid Pop, and a pack of Bertie Botts Every Flavor Beans. George also got a pack of Bernie Botts, but also decided upon a case of Pepper Imps and Peppermint Toads. Angelina had difficulty deciding but ultimately chose a Pumpkin Pasty (upon another suggestion from a second year Hufflepuff), a pack of four Sherbet Lemons, and a box Caterwauling Confections.
"Mmm," she said as she bit into her pumpkin pasty, "they ARE good."
"Yeah my brother Bill said they are at every meal," George replied as he opened up his box of Berties Botts and selected a yellow and white colored one. The taste of buttered popcorn covered his tongue. He was safe… for now. "I thought I'd have one tonight."
Fred had taken his Frog out it package and watched it do its only jump…and landing directly on Angelina's face. She shrieked in surprise and then in laughter. She picked up and examined it, "So since it landed on me do I eat it should I return it?"
"Retur-," Fred began to say indignantly, but Angelina smiled and bit the head off the frog. Fred's mouth dropped open in amazement and George burst out laughing. The look on his twin's face was absolute disbelief that she ate his chocolate frog that he had coveted since the beginning of the train. She chewed slowly, relishing the moment and then grinned. She then opened her bag again and pulled out another unopened chocolate frog. "Gotcha."
"Nice," Fred said grinning, "You pranked the Weasley Twins. Acid Pop?"
"I'm so glad I sat by you one the train that day," Angelina murmured.
"I am too," he said staring at the baby. "You know, he has something in common with Fred."
"Really, what," she asked, her eyes full of confusion.
"We're all pranksters."
"What," she asked, clearly not understanding.
"George and I were both born April Fools Day and he," he said, pointing as the suckling child, "was born on Leap Day."
She blinked at him for a few moments, and then her eyes rounded in amazement and perhaps a bit of horror and George let out a mighty laugh, "Oh if only Fred were here to see this. ANOTHER PRANKSTER!"
Phew. This was an emotional chapter. The death of Fred Weasley was something I was unprepared for in the books. I did expect one of the Weasley children to die in the Battle of Hogwarts but I had a feeling it would be Percy, sacrificing himself for a member of his family or Molly herself, being a Momma Bear. So, while writing this chapter, I knew I had to incorporate his death into the chapter as his twin's son would carry on his name. I also knew that Angelina would need to have more interaction with Fred than what we only saw in the book, thus the candy scene in the train and the Quidditch Room scene was created.
A portion of this scene was inspired by the ending of Futurama's 'The Luck of the Fryish'. I highly recommend watching this episode if you are 14 years or older. The only portion that I put in that relates to me is the prank box Fred gave to Angelina. I picked up the same box at a flea market a few years back with a penny inside.